"Come out?" the cold, terrifying voice retorted. "You don't have the right!"
Xin Yu really wanted to rush out, to defy the voice!
But she didn't dare. The other party had so blatantly shown her the photos; they must have been well-prepared!
"What do you want!" Xin Yu shouted at the air, trying to avoid looking at the horrifying photos again.
"A smart girl!" he sneered. "I like that."
Xin Yu got goosebumps all over.
"Leave Mu Yichuan from now on—"
"Don't even think about it!" Xin Yu interrupted him angrily. What right did he have to demand such a thing of hers? "Impossible!"
"Fine." The terrifying voice scoffed contemptuously. "The photos will be released to the public tomorrow."
Xin Yu bit her lip tightly. The other party was too ruthless. On one side was her closest friend, and on the other was the man she deeply loved. How could the scales tip…?
"Fine." After a long silence, just as the other party was about to hang up, she couldn't utter a single word.
She had no choice but to agree for now; she couldn't risk Cheng Yuan's lifelong innocence for her own happiness.
"That's a good girl."
"I'm giving you time to delete these photos immediately and destroy the digital copies!"
"Don't rush, good girl!" The other person remained cold and mechanical. "My demands aren't over yet. Leaving Mu Yichuan is only one thing. Secondly, you can't see Old Master Mu, otherwise the photos will still be exposed!"
Old Master Mu? Mu Yichuan's father?
Who exactly is this person?
Why are they making such demands of her?
Unable to understand, Xin Yu could only agree to both. Just as she was about to ask him to destroy the photos, only a cold dial tone remained on the other end of the phone.
Helpless, she endured immense grief and pressure, carefully collecting the photos one by one and destroying them in the bathroom…
Walking aimlessly down the street, Xin Yu felt trapped in a strange cycle from which she couldn't escape.
Leaving Mu Yichuan? Not being able to see Old Master Mu?
She felt cold all over, unbearably anxious.
"Xin Yu, calm down, calm down," she forced herself.
She frantically searched her mind, trying to figure out who this person was.
Zhang Wan?!
Xin Yu was suddenly startled and quickened her pace.
When she arrived at Ya Culture Company, Cheng Yuan was just getting off work. Xin Yu grabbed her and pulled her towards a nearby park.
"Ayu, what's wrong?" She was completely confused. The case in Beishi had naturally been suppressed by the Mu family, and few people knew about it.
"Yuanzi, tell me, who was the person you said you slept with last time?"
"..." Cheng Yuan blinked, not expecting Xin Yu to ask this so bluntly, and her face quickly turned red.
"Yuanzi!" Xin Yu couldn't contain her impatience, and her voice became a little loud. "Can't you tell me! Who was it?!"
That person betrayed her!
But she had planned to marry him!
"No, no one." Cheng Yuan bit her lip, unsure how to explain. She had only lied so that Xin Yu could consider Liu Shuihan without any burden.
"..." Xin Yu assumed Cheng Yuan was shy or had other concerns and didn't want to talk, so she frowned and remained silent.
"Ayu, really, it's nothing, don't be angry, I promise I won't get married so easily." Cheng Yuan pouted her chubby little face, pleading sweetly.
Xin Yu sighed and didn't say anything more. She didn't dare reveal the photos, otherwise Cheng Yuan, as the person involved, would definitely go crazy.
After saying goodbye to Cheng Yuan, she walked towards the hospital with mixed feelings. Even though she had agreed to that bad person's request, she still wanted to see Mu Yichuan, and even wanted to talk to him. He would definitely have a way!
But could she take the risk?
Especially facing the injured Mu Yichuan...
"Sigh!" Why did things have to come to this point? Xin Yu sighed as she walked, but before she even stepped into the hospital, she was stopped!
Mu Yi'ai! "You came to see Mu Yichuan?"
"Of course not!" Mu Yi'ai answered naturally and decisively, "I came to find you!"
Xin Yu quickly lowered her eyes and furrowed her brows. Was this person here to settle scores?
After all, she was the one who caused Mu Yichuan's injury.
"Tell me what exactly happened between Nan Yu and me!"
Uh… she was still struggling with this!
"Are you going to tell me or not?!" Mu Yi'ai grabbed Xin Yu's arm, gripping it tightly, her cat-like eyes red with anger.
"I don't know—"
"Don't know!" Mu Yi'ai interrupted, "You'd better think carefully, your life is in my hands! One word from me and you're finished!"
Xin Yu's lips twitched. This woman's stubbornness was truly remarkable. "Then why don't you just order them to investigate your past?"
Why come here to ask her!
She didn't know what had happened between them either! "Have you thought this through?" Mu Yi'ai raised an eyebrow. "If you tell me, I can put in a good word for you with the old man. You know, the road between you and Mu Yichuan isn't easy."
Xin Yu paused, unsure how to respond. If this offer had come sooner, she might have been happy.
"Don't be so ungrateful! Are you going to tell me or not?!" Mu Yi'ai was incredibly agitated. She desperately wanted to know what had gone wrong between her and Nan Yu—the man she had loved for so many years!
Why couldn't she see him?!
Why was everyone just giving her the runaround?
"I really don't know what happened between you two. When I met you, Nan Yu was already ignoring you, and seemed to harbor a deep resentment towards you." Xin Yu's arm was numb from being pinched.
But Mu Yi'ai seemed oblivious, preoccupied with what Zhang Wan had told her. Had she really hurt Nan Yu?!
She was a bad person! "No, no!" Mu Yi'ai suddenly and loudly denied her inner judgment. Even if she had done many wrong things, she still loved Nan Yu!
"You..." Xin Yu frowned, her pain and struggle evident, but the next moment, a fierce glint flashed in her cat-like eyes.
"What are you doing here!" A clear male voice, like the evening breeze, rang out.
Nan Yu?!
Xin Yu stared at him, wide-eyed. "You... came to see Mu Yichuan?"
"Let her go!" Nan Yu didn't answer the question, instead giving an order to Mu Yi'ai.
"You really know how to be chivalrous now!" she sneered, pushing Xin Yu away and running off.
This...!
Xin Yu couldn't believe what she was seeing. Mu Yi'ai had really changed her nature!
"Are you alright?" Nan Yu asked gently, his eyes clear.
Xin Yu pursed her lips, wanting to nod, but she really wasn't well! "Don't worry too much. With current medical technology, Mu Yichuan's injuries will heal quickly."
"Mm." Xin Yu gave a soft "Mm," but she knew in her heart how painful the process of injury and recovery would be.
"Xin Yu." Nan Yu took a step closer to her, slightly hesitant, "Do you really like Mu Yichuan that much?"
She looked up abruptly, her dark eyes filled with surprise, "I—"
"Like him so much that you don't even consider his identity, status, past, and future!"
Xin Yu froze, her heart churning uncontrollably.
"Leave him! He's not right for you!" Nan Yu said firmly, "You're so kind, you're not suited for someone like him!"
"What kind of person is he?" Xin Yu murmured, simply not understanding why Nan Yu thought of Mu Yichuan this way!
"He's too complicated, don't you think?"
Complicated?
For some reason, Xin Yu thought of the old gentleman who bore a five-point resemblance to Mu Yichuan!
The Mu family is so powerful, there must be deep conflicts between them, right? Mu Yi'ai seemed to have expressed a similar opinion before.
"And—" Nan Yu clenched his fists, veins bulging, "Last time I heard it at the hospital—"
"Ah! Who are you people!" Xin Yu was terrified by the sudden appearance of a group of men in black!
"What are you doing? Let him go!" No matter how Xin Yu shouted, the men in black held Nan Yu firmly in their grip, unmoved.
"Take him away!" Mu Yi'ai took three steps away and gave the order.
...!
I knew someone could change their nature!
"Mu Yi'ai, what are you doing? Let Nan Yu go!" Xin Yu chased after Mu Yi'ai, how could she be so forceful!
This was clearly escalating the conflict!
"Mind your own business, huh?" She rolled her cat-like eyes, a wild glint in them.
"No, Mu Yi'ai, don't do this! It'll only make Nan Yu more conflicted!"
"Really? You seem to know him quite well!" She gritted her teeth in anger, grabbed Xin Yu, and shoved her into the car. "It'll be good for you to see!"
In the car, Mu Yi'ai sat motionless, lost in thought, like a statue. Xin Yu tried to persuade her again, but Mu Yi'ai didn't respond.
"Where are you taking Nan Yu?"
Xin Yu had barely finished asking when the car stopped. She looked outside—damn!
The Civil Affairs Bureau!
"Mu Yi'ai, stop going crazy!" Nan Yu roared, his face contorted in pain, his clear eyes now filled with suppressed rage.
"I'm going crazy! That's right!" She was going crazy thinking about him!
But no one cared about her, no one understood her!
"You two...stop arguing! Talk it out!" Xin Yu looked back and forth between the two of them, anxiously waiting.
"Today, I'm going to get our marriage certificate!" Mu Yi'ai declared loudly; she was determined to do what she had decided!
"Let me go!" Nan Yu's face was cold, his scars grotesque. "If you continue to act recklessly, I guarantee the Nan family will wipe out the Mu family!"
"Sure!" Mu Yi'ai smirked, tossing her long, wavy hair. "Even if you destroy the Mu family, it doesn't matter. Once we're married, I'll take the Nan surname from now on."
"Mu Yi'ai, go to hell!" Nan Yu's bloodshot eyes were filled with hatred. "Haven't you done enough evil in your life?!"
"What have I done?!" She was also angry, trembling with rage, but still holding her head high, maintaining her imposing manner.
"What have you done? Ha!" Nan Yu glared, his tolerance completely gone. "Three years ago, you insisted on racing, causing a catastrophe that claimed so many lives. You even disfigured and injured me. Two months ago in Nanshi, a month ago in Beishi, you drugged me time and time again, driving me to madness. What...what...are...you...want...to...do...more...?"
His cold, accusatory words failed to elicit any remorse from Mu Yi'ai.
"Take him inside!" she ordered the man in black, then led the way into the Civil Affairs Bureau.
This…
Xin Yu quickly followed, racking her brains for a solution, but right now, unless she could persuade Mu Yi'ai, there was truly no other way.
"Xin Yu, contact my uncle immediately!" Nan Yu had barely finished speaking when Xin Yu was restrained in a chair by the man in black.
"Mu Yi'ai, stop making a scene! Let's talk this out!" Xin Yu, seeing Nan Yu about to lose his temper, quickly tried to calm him down. "Marriage isn't a game!"
It always requires mutual consent!